Plant Witchery: Discover the Sacred Language, Wisdom, and Magic of 200 Plants - Juliet Diaz 2020

Myrtle Myrtus communis
A Compendium of Plants

ESSENTIAL PROPERTIES

love, psychic ability

This fragrant, evergreen shrub has tiny star-shaped flowers, usually white. She has been around for thousands of years, and featured heavily in Greek mythology: When the nymph Daphne was trying to escape the unwelcome attentions of Apollo, she turned into a myrtle tree. In Greece and its surrounding areas, myrtle is frequently used in cooking. Her leaves are steeped in olive oil to give it flavor, her berries are used to make liqueurs, and when they are dried they can be used as a substitute for pepper.

MEDICINAL PROPERTIES

Like willow, myrtle bark contains salicylic acid, a natural form of aspirin, and so she is a powerful pain reliever and fever reducer. She can also clear up a sinus infection. The leaves are rich in essential oil.

MAGICAL PROPERTIES

Work with myrtle to open your third eye and develop your psychic gifts. Although there are quite a few plants who can do the same for you, myrtle is gentler than most. She is careful not to spring open anything that you cannot handle, offering just a little at a time, so I recommend her to beginners and to those who have a bit of fear or hesitation about opening up to higher divinity.

PLANT WISDOM

Myrtle is sacred to Aphrodite, and on the first of April, Greek maidens would bathe in waters steeped in myrtle to honor the goddess of love. But myrtle’s loving nature has been recognized all over the world. In many Indigenous cultures, bathing with myrtle brings abundance in love; especially for those who have suffered trauma, myrtle is a gentle but powerful healer of the heart. Myrtle’s primary message is that of compassion—and all of us need to be more compassionate. We often think we are, but without realizing it our words can be more hurtful than healing. Invite myrtle into your dreams to learn more about what compassion truly means and how to embody it fully.